cooper



6 Sheets-Sheet 1.

1. n.. COOPER.

om n0 mm .Pw nu nu d e t n w a D ou 3 91 A. o0 n N I?? ver: 50T.'

l. R. COOPER.

` Breechl Loading Fire Arm.

No. 84,938. l Patented Dec. I15, 1,868.

(f 'i u 6 yShams-Sheet 6 Sheets-Sheet 3.

J. R. COOPER. B'reech Loadig Fire Arm.

' Patented Dec. 15, 1868.

ingenio r: l

6 Sheets-Sheet 4. l. R. CUOPER.

Breech Loading Fire Arm.

Patented nec. 15, 1868. I

l6 Sheets-'Shed 5.

l J. R. COOPER,

.Breech Loading Fire Arm.

No. 84,988. Patented 088181888.

'gg A mi 8f! 8 P I gyn N 8 g d "a vx 8 @JMW l l 5mm Mesas-M- JOsEPn ROOK COOPER, OE BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND.

/ i Leum Patent No. 84,938, me December 15, 186s'.

IMPROVEMENT IN BREECH-IOADING FIRE-ARMS:

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same.

To all to whom may concern:

Be it known that I, J Osnrn ROOK Goornn, of Birmingham, in ti'e county of Warwick, England, guumanuiitcturer, asubject of the Queen of Great Blitain, have'iuvented or discovered new and useful Improvements in Breach-Loading and other Fi1e-Arins; and I, the said JOSEPH ROCK COOPER, do herebydeelare the nature of the said invention, and in what'manner the same is to b f pe'iinmed, to be particularly described and ascertaineriin andby theibllowing statement thereof; that is to say- My invention consists, first, in constructing and arranging the parts of breech-loading fire-arms, iu the manner hereinafter described, .whereby the Opening of the breech, the withdrawal ofthe easeof the exploded cartridge, and the cooking of the hammer are effected at one operation. My invention is especially applicable to central-lire guus, but nia-y also be applied to guns in which the firing is not central. I close the breech' of the gun by means Of' a closing-block, hinged to the side of the shoe, or breech-chamber, and capable, by turning upon its hinge, of being shut down into o1' raised from the said `ln'eech-chamber. A spring, acting ou the joint of the closing-block, lifts it from the breech-chamber, and supports it in its raised position when the said block is at liberty to move. The hammer is jointed onthe under side of the barrel, and ou its liberation, by pressure upon the trigger, is forced upwards by a spring, and made to strike the striker and discharge the cartridge. On the centre, on which the hanuner turns, is an arm or level', which works in a slot at the back of the breech-chamber. The top of this lever is provided with a comb or thumb-plate, by which it is moved. A spring presses the said lever into its raised or original position. A projection on the i'ront of this lever projects over the breech-block, when the latter is shut down, and fixes it in its place during the discharge. On shutting down the breechblock, it presses upon the inclined upper side of the said projection, and, forcing it back, causes it to snap over the said block and bolt it down. When the said arm or lever is depressed, it bears against the front of the hammer, and carries the hammer down until it reaches its cocked position. The cartridge-case extractor consists of a bar, sliding in a slot in the breechchamber. llhe said bar carries at its front a hook,Y

turns by the action of its spring, the projection on itsi'ront being pressed back ou the closing of the breechblock, and made 'to snap over and x the said block down. In order the more certainly to secure the raising of the closing-blink on thcdrawing back of the lever, the lever-spring is made to hear against a piu, which passes through the breech-chamber. By the Operation of the said spring, the breech-block is started from its depressed position with great force ou drawing back the. lever. Instead of making the lever depress the hammer to full cock, it may be made to depress it only to half cock. .lhe hammer, in this case, is provided witha comb or plate, by which it can be brought to full cock by the application of the thumb. l

My invention consists, second, in preventing the aeeidental discharge of breech-loading and other firearms, by the adaptation or use of a holt or pin, made to pass transversely through or against such part or parts of thc fire-arm as will cause tho said bolt or pin to tix the hammer, or to iix such other part ofthe tirearm as will prevent the discharge of the fre-arm.

Having explained the nature ol' my invention, I will proceed to describe, with reference to the accompanying drawings, the manner in which the same is to be perfbrnied.

Figure '.l represents, iu side elevation, and

Figure 2, in pian, the breech-emi ofabreech-loading gun constructed according to my invention, the breechblock being shut down, and the parts of the gun being in positionl for discharge.

Figures 3'aud 4 are longitudinal vertical sections ofk the gun, (al portion being omitted in iig. 4.)

Figure 5 is a side elevation of the breech-end of the gun yseparated from the stock.

Figures 6 and 7 are transverse sections of the gnu, fig. 6 representing the block closed, and g. 7, the block open.

without the breech-block, and

Figures 9, 10, 11, and 12 are parts of the gun.

The same letters and figures of reference indicate the sameparts in each figure ot' the drawings.

a is the shoe, or bieech-chamber, at the rear end of the barrel l1, and Y c is the breech-block, hingedor jointed at c to the side of the said breech-chamber. Byturning the block c upon its joint, it is capable of being shut down into or 'raised from thc breech-chamber.

In thc said block is the striker d, by which the cartridge is discharged. v

The said block c is jointed to the side of the breechchamber by the knuckle e, the under side of which knuckle is shaped in the manner best seen iu iigs. 6 and 7.

A spring, or spring-lever, f fi, is fixedtothe side of the breech-chamber, in the manner seen in fig. 5. The free end, f2, of the said spring-lever is bent at right angles to the other part, and the top of the said part f2- bears'upon the knuckle eat c. When the block c Figure 8 represents a longitudinal section of ltig. 5,.

is at liberty to move, the said spring-lever f fz lifts it from the breech-chamber a, and also supportsA it in its ra sed position.

By an examination of figs. 6 and 7, the mannerin which the spring-lever opera-tes upou the knuckle e, and raises and supports the breech-block, will be readily understood.

g is the hammer of the gun, turning on the pin or centregz, and urged upwards to strike the striker ll, and discharge the cartridge h by means ofthe mainsprmg z.

An arm on the hammer g carries a small roller, y, against which the free end ol" the spring i bears.

The upper side ofthe trig rer I: bears upon the under side of thehamrner g.

When the hammerl y is cocked or depressed, in the manner hereinafter described, it is retained in that position by the roller y, on its arm being advanced so far under the main-springt that the said spring no longer tends to give the said hammer motion on the pin or centre gi.

By pressing upon the trigger lf, the hammer 1/ is slightly raised, and by the changed position of the roller g, and arm carrying it, with respect to the main-spring fi., the said spring i raises the said hammer, andeauses it to discharge the gun.

The trigger It may be dispensed with, and the tail ofthe hammer g lcngthened, so as to project from the body ofthe gun. In this case, the finger may be applied directly to the tail of the hammer y, for the purpose ci discharging thergurr. Or, instead of the trigger, a pin, passing through the side of the giur,- and inclined on its upper side, may be made to raise the hammer, and discharge the gun. Y

Although, where a full-cock action of' the hammer is required, l prefer to use. the arrangement of the harnnrer and main-spring described and represented, yet l do not limit myself to the said arrangement of' the hammer and main-spring.

Un the .centre g2, on which Athe hammer' g turns, is an arm orlcver, l, working in a slot, m, at the back of the breech-chamber a.

The top of the said lever [is provided with a comb or thumb-plate, L2, by which it is moved.

A spring, a, acting against the tail ofthe said leverl, presses the said lever' into its raised position, as represented in iig. 3.

In tig. 4 the lever l is omitted, in order the better to exhibit the position ofthe cocked hamnrer g.

The hammer is shown separately in (i f. 10 and the arm or lever l is shown separately in iig. 9.

A projection, P, is made in front of the thumb-plate I of the lever l, for the purpose of fixing the breechblock c in its place during the discharge ofthe gun.

After the block c has been raised from the breechchamber a., the projection P occupies the position represented in figs. l, 2, 3, and 5, and on the shutting down ofthe block c, the curved or inclined end of the projection 0*, oi' the block c, presses upon the inclined upper' side of the projection l, and, forcing it back, causes it to snap over the said block, and bolt the said block down.

The hammer g is provided with a pin, g, which enters the recess at l in the lever I, when the latter acts upon the said hammer. When the said lever l is depressed by its thumb-plate l, it bears against the. pin g, on the hammer g, and carries the hammer down until it reaches its 'cocked position, in which position it is retained by the main-spring i, as hereinluetbre explained.

Orr loosing the lever l, it is retin-ned to its raised postion by the action of the'spring In, leaving the harnmei' in its cocked position.

When the lever l is raised, the slot at m,'in which it works, is closed by the curved upper side ofthe said lever. (See the plan, lig. 2.)

p is the cartridge-case extractor, working in a slot in the sidegof the breech-chamber a, opposite that at which the breech-block isjointed.

The bar of the extractor has a hook, p2, at its fro'n't end, and a plate, p8, at its rear end.

The said plate p3 is provided with a curved slot, p, in which slot a. pin, q, on the lever l, works.

The extractor is shown separately in lig. 11, and its posit-ion in the gun is best seen in fig. 8.

When the lever l-is depressed, to open and cock the gun, the pin q traverses the nearly horizontal part of the slot p* without operating upon the extractor. When, however, the lever l is depressed suciently low to permit of the liberation ofthe block c, the further motion of the said lever carries the pin q into the nearly vertical partof the slot p, and the said pin now draws back the extractor p. 0n the return ofthe lever l to its raised position, the hook'ofthe extractor is advanced to its place in the barrel by the action of the pin q and slot 11.

In Aloading breech-loading nre-arms, it is necessary to hohl the lire-arm in such a position that the muzzleend of the barrel is not much higher than the breechend, or there is danger that the cartridge will fall from` the barrel into' the breech-chamber, or shoe, and be thereby injured or accidentally discharged on the closing oi' the breech.

I prevent the falling of the. cartridge from the barrel into the breech-chamber, in whatever position the grrrr may be held, in the tbllowing manner:

In the under side ofthe breech-chamber a, and projecting through the said chamber, I place a spring-stud, lr, which, when the breech-block is raised, springs in 'front of the recess in the mouth of the barrel, whichA the rim of the cartridge occupies when placed in the barrel. (See fig. 8.) By means otl the spring-stud yr, the cartridge is held in its place in the barrel before the bloc-k c is shut down, and the gun can thereby be loaded with the barrel 4r'n a vertical or inclined position, that is, with the muzzle-end ofthe gun situated higher than the breech-end of the gun.

The action ofthe gun is as follows:

The parts of the gun being in the relative positions represented in figs. l, 2, and 3, the gun is ready to be discharged. On pressing upon the trigger k, the hammer y is forced upwards by the action of its spring i, and the heads ofthe said hammer, passing through the hole t in the rear end of the breech-chamber a, strikes upon therear end of the striker' (l in the block e, and causes the front end ofthe said striker to explode the cartridge la, and discharge the gun.

In order to recharge the gun, thel lever Z is pulled back, by pressing the thumb. upon its comb, l. The breech-block being liberated, is thrown up, and maintained in its raised position, as represented in fig. 7, by the action ot' the spring-lever fj. The depressing of the lever l has at the same time, by the action of the pin q arid slot p, withdrawn the extractor p, and brought into the breech-chamber a, from the barrel b, the case of the exploded cartridge. The said lever l has also, in its descending mot-ion, depressed and cocked the hammer g. Immediately after the lever' l'has been depressed, and has effected the operations described, the thumb may be removed from it, when it returns, by the action of the spring In, to the position rcpresented in the drawings, the projection I3 of the said lever' coming-'over the rear ond ot' the open breechchamber. 'lhe exploded cartridge-case is now removed from the brecclr-charnber a, and a fresh cartridge may be introduced into `the barrel. On introducing'the eartridge, its rim presses back-thc spring-stud r, which, when the cartridge is in its place, bears against the vsaid rim, and holdsthe cartridge in the barrel. 'lhe breech-block c is now shut down, by its handle or thumb-plate ci, the said block pressing back in its nrotion the projection l3 on the lever' l. When the block has been completely shut down, the said projection I3 snaps over the block c, and securely fixes it down. The gun is now ready to be discharged, as illustrated in the drawings.

The gun maybe provided with mechanism for. starting the breech-block on the drawing back of the lever Z.

This arrangement of my invention is represented in connection with the gnu shown in figs. 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17- Figure 13 representing a side elevation of the gun, (without the stock Figure 14, a transverse vertical section of the same;

Figure 15, the cooking-lever;

Figure 16, the hammer; and

Figure 17, the lever and hammer combined.

Near the ii'ee end of the spring a, which raises the lever l, a pin, a2, is connected, in the manner shown in the cross-section, Iig. 14.

The upper end of the pin yn2 passes through and works in a hole at ai, in the bottom `of the breechchamber avand, when the breech-block cis in its place, bears upon the under side ofthe said block. As the lever l is drawn back to open the breech, the spring/a is raised and brought into a state of tension. The pin n2, carried by the said spring, is consequently raised, and made to bear with great force upon the block c, and startthe said block e from the ln'eech-chamber a. As the lever l is raised by the spring n, the said spring descends,earrying with it the pin n to the position represented in the drawing. The bottom ofthe breech-block c is cnt away, to permit it to shut down without interfering with the projecting npper'end of the said pin n.

1n this arrangement, the lever l has a projection, l5, formed upon it, which, when the said lever is depressed, strikes against the face of the hammer y, and carries the said hammer down to its cocked position.

Figure 18 represents, partly in side elevation and partly in longitudinal vertical section, another gun, containing my improvements, in which said gnu the hammer is provided with half-cock mechanism.

Figure 19 is an elevation of the same, without the stock, taken ii'om the opposite side ofthe gun to that at which the elevation of 18 is taken.

Figure 20 represents the lever separately;

Figure 21, the hammer separately; and

Figure 22, the cartridge-case extractor separately.

In addition to the half-cock mechanism, the arrangements for actuating the cartridge-case extractor, and

for raising the breech-block, are different in rigs. 18 and 19 from those represented in figs. l to 11 of the dmwings.

l is the level' for holding down the breech-block, for depressing the hammer y, and for actuating the extractor p.

a is the spring, for raising the said lever l.

The hammer y is furnished with mechanism similar to that ofthe hammer or cock of an ordinary gun; that is to say, the tumbler of the said hammer g is furnished with half-cock and full-cock `bouts at u, and also with a sere, v, for engaging with one or other ot' the said bents. v

w is the sere-spring.

The said sere 'v turns qu the side ofthe breechchamber, and its longer arm'is acted upon by the trigger k, intheI ordinary way.

The main-spring i, of the hammer, is conn the said hammer by the ordinary link, yi.

ectcd to l The hammer g has a comb, y, for bringing it toA full cock by the thumb.

ln this arrangement,,both the lever I and hammer g project through the slot behind the bremsh-ehaniber, as represented in iigs, 18 and 19.

After the discharge of the gun, and on depressing the lever l, thc said lever carries down, in the manner hereinbefore explained, the .hammer 1/,the sere e falling into the half-cock bent at 7l, in the tumbler half-cocked position.-

rlhe gun `having been reloaded, and the breechblock bolted down, the hammer g is brought to full cock by pressure on the comb q6 of the said hammer, wheuthe gun may be discharged by pulling the trigger It.

In this arrangement, the'front end, p", of the extractor p, is turned at right angles to the other part, and the said part, p", is operated upon by means of a lixed arm, and stud y, on the lever Z.

On depressing the lever I, to open the breech-chamber, the fixed arm a: acts against the part p5, and withdraws the cartridge-case extractor p, and when the leverl is raised, the said extractor' p is returned to its place by means of the stud y acting against the part p5, as will be understood by an examination of tig. 18.

'Instead of employing aspring-lever for acting against the knuckle c ofthe breech-block c, a doubled spxing, of the kind represented in fig. 19, and marked 2, may be used. In this case, the i'ee end of the said spring 2 is connected with a sliding bar, 3, working in a. slot 3, acting upon the knuckle of the block c in the manarm or lever ff?.

The parts ofthe gun, figs. 18 and 19, which I have not described, are marked with the same letters as corresponding parts in figs. 1 to 11. A

Instead of placing the lever, by which the breechblock is held down, the hammer cocked, and the' cartridge-case extractor worked, at the back of the breechlchamber, as in the several 'arm-ngemeuts hereinbefore described, the said lever may be placed outside the cock or hammer.

This arrangement of my invention is represented in figs. 23, 24, 25, 26, and 27 of the drawings- Figure 23 representing a side elevation of the gun;

Figure 24, the same, partly in section, without the stock; and f Figures 25, 26, and27 are parts ofthe same.

g is the hammer ofthe gun, ofthe kind hcreinbefore described, turning on thc pill or centre y, carried by bearings on the under side of the breech-chamber.

l is the lever, situated at the side of the gun, by which the block c is held down, the hammer g cocked, and the extractor h worked.

The said lever l turns in the plate m, which plate is tixcd to thel stock of the gun.

0n the axis of the levi-r l, and situated on the inner side of the plate lm, is a forked arm, a. l

The return motion of the level' .l and arm n is effected by the spring p, bearing afgainstthe tail of the said arm n, as secu in the separate view, fig. 25.

A hole, n?, is made in the forked arm a, which tits loosely upon the piu or axis g2, 'of the han'nner g.

Also, turningloosely upon the axis g2, of the hammer y, is a second arm, q, shown separately in tig. 27.

The said arm q is provided with three projections, r s t. With the prQicct-ion r the -fork of the arm n, of the lever I, engages, and thereby, on the motion of the said lever, gives a corresponding motion to the loose arnrq.' '.lhe projection s, ofthe arnrq, engages bein ii'ont of thc hannncr g.

i Un pulling back the lever l, the forked arm n gives motion to the loose arm q, which `latter arm, by means of its projections s t, depresses and cocks the hammer g, and witlnlrawsthe cartridge-case extractor h,

On loosing the lever l, itis raised by the spring p,

ofthe hammer, and holding the said'hammer in its in the breech-chamber; the upper end of the said bar' ner hereinbefore described withrespect to the springgnn, in the position usually occupied Vby au ordinary tween the fork hv'", of the extractor h, s hown separately i in fig. 26, and the projection t, ofthe said arm q, bears and the cartridge-.ease extractor is 'at the same time pushed back bythe arm j' acting upon the opposite side ofthe fork of theosaid extmctor.

As the hammer of the gun in this arrangement is concealed, I provide the said gun with au indicator, by means of which the position ofthe hammer is readily ascertained. This indicator consists of a small rod, fa, sliding radially in a slot at v, made in the side of the breech-chamber, a spring, w', acting on a pin or projection on the said lod, pressing it towards the hammer y.

The edge or periphery of the hammer gis eccentric to the axis' g2, on which it turns, so that when the hammer is cocked, the said eccentric edge bears upon the rod and projects it outwards, as indicated in dotted lines, and thus indicates that the hammer is cocked.

On the discharge of the gun, the indicator' u is returned to the position represented by the action of the spring w.

The indicator described and represented, may be applied to the guns previously described, and the said indicator may be employed for discharging the' gun, by giving it a position more nearly horizontal `than that represented. By making a shoulder at the back ofthe head of the hammer, against which the end of the indicator abuts, pressure on the said 'indicator' causes it to start the hammer, and thereby to discharge the gun.

scribed, ma-y he applied to guns in which the closingblock is hinged to the open breech-endof the barrel, instead of to the side ofthe breech-chamber, or shoe.

The various lock-actions hereinbeibre descnbed, may be applied to double breech-loading guns and pistols, as well as to singlebreech-loading guns and -pistols, and to breech-loading fire-arms, in which the breech is opened and closed in ways different from that hereinbefore described, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In igs. 1, 2, and 13, the bolt or pin which I use for preventing the 4accidental discharge of the gun is represented. In the said figs. 1, 2, and 13, the bolt or Lpin is marked 4, and the said bolt is represented separately in g. 12. In figs. 1 and 2; the bolt 4 is attached, by a chain, 5, to the trigger-guard, and in fig.

13, to the talig ofthe breech-chamber.

In the sides of the rear end of the breech-chamber,

at 6, 7, iig. 2, screwed holes are made, of a size proper to receive the screwed part 4, of the said bolt or pin 4, and in the hammer y and lever l, holes are made,'of a size' proper to receive the plain stern of the pin or bolt.

When the bolt or piu 4 is 'screwed into the hole 6,'

iu the right-hand side of the breech-chamber, as represented in the drawing, it enters the holes in the lever l and hammer g, and iixes the said parts down, and thereby makes the whole mechanism of the gun incapable of motion. v

When the hammer g has been cocked, and it is wished to tix it in its cocked position, the bolt or pin 4 is screwed into the hole 7,iu the left-hand side of the breech-chamber. lhc bolt or pin in this case passes transversely in front of the cocked hammer g, and prevents its accidental discharge, the lever l being at liberty to move, so that, if necessary, the breechblock c may be raised, andthe breech-chamber a and the content-s ofthe barrel be examined before the discharge of the gun. Or a bolt or pin, of the kind represented, may be passed through' a hole in the breechblock c, and made to engage 1n a hole oldepression in the striker d, and thereby prevent the advance of the said striker, should the gun he accidentally discharged.

Whcn the bolt is not in use, it may be screwed in a hole, 8, in the trigger-guard, o1' other convenient part ofthe gun.

In the case of double guns, the bolt or pin may pass through a hole, which permits it to lix the discharging and breechloading mechanism of both barrels; or a separate bolt or pin and holc may be used for each barrel.

Instead of making the bolt or pin screw into the hole in the breech-chamber, or other part of the gun, the bolt or pin may hc made plain, and he made to fit the hole tightly.

Although I prefer to connect the bolt or pin to the i. fire-arm by a chain, or other connection, yet I do not the fire-arm, and carried in the pocket, to be used as occasion mayrequire.

The bolt or piu described and represented, is aplplicable to all kinds of single and double muzzle-loading and breech-loading guns and pistols.

Having now described the nature of my invention, and the manner in which the same is to be performed, I wish it to be understood that I do notv limit myself to the precise details herein described and illustrated, as the same maybe varied without departing from the nature of my invention; but

What I claim as my invention, is-

1. -Iu breech-loading lire-arms, such as described, the combination, with the breech-block, cartridge-cx tractor, and hammer, of an independent vibratory or pi voted lever, having an independent return move- Y ment for locking the breech-block, and connected with said parts in the manner set forth, so that by. the action of said lever the opening of the breech, the withdrawal of the cartridge, and the cocking of the hammer may be effected at one opelation, as specified.

2. The combination, with the hammer and breech block and shoe, of the lever l, and its actuating-spring, inthe manner described, so that while thelcvcr, in its backward movement, carries with it and cocks the hammer, it will be caused by its spring to return, iudependently of the hammer, in position to e'ect the locking of the breech-block as set forth.

3. Lifting the hinged breech-blocks of breech-loadt-he said tire-arms, and supporting the said blocks in their raised position by means of a spring or springlever, arranged and operating upon the joint of the block, substantially in the manner hereinbefore described, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

4. In connection with the breech-ehamberand hinged block, the combination and arrangement of'parts described, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, for starting the 'breech-block from the breech-chamber, or shoe, on releasing the said block.

5. The spring-stud forA retaining the cartridge in the barrel, constructed and arranged in the breechchamber, as hereinbefbre described, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, so that the said gun may be loaded, with the muzzleend ofthe barrel raised higher than the breech-end.

6. The implovement or improvements hereinbef'ore described, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in preventing Ithe accidental discharge of breechloading and other fire-arms, that is to say, by means of a detachable or removable bolt or pin, made to pass, from the extcriorot' the gun, transversely through, or bear against such part or parts of the fire-arm as will cause the said bolt or pin to fix the hammer, or tix such other part of the fire-arm as will prevent the discharge of the fire-arm.

JOSEPH Roci oooren. [n s.)

Witnesses:

GEORGE SHAW,

7 Cannon Street, Birminghmn. RICHARD SKERRETT,

7 `Cannon Street, Birmingham.

limit-myself thereto, as the bolt may be detached from ing fire-arms from the breech-,chambers or shoes of 4 

